Federal Police officers destroyed a 36,000-plant cannabis plantation on a farm in Pedra, in the Agreste region of Pernambuco.[1] The operation happened on 20 September 2016 and the Federal Police announced it on 27 September.[2] A 26-year-old farm worker found working in the plantation was arrested at the scene and taken to the Advogado Brito Alves prison in Arcoverde.[2] The farm’s owner was also held, but received a release order the day after the arrest and will answer the case at liberty.[3] According to the Federal Police press office, the plantation was discovered thanks to denunciations, that is, tip-offs from the public.[1] Three more people who took part in the cultivation were identified and, according to the Federal Police, will be charged with trafficking and association for trafficking.[2]

At the end of the operation officers cut down and burned every cannabis plant, which the Federal Police said would have yielded 12 tonnes of the drug when prepared for sale.[3] The officers also destroyed 120 kilograms of cannabis that was already packed for distribution.[1] Electric pumps drew water from the Riacho do Pau reservoir into small dams, and two kilometres of pipe carried it to the crop.[1] The Federal Police said the crop was planted with developed soil-preparation and cultivation techniques, using chemical fertiliser and several farm implements, and that the farm’s owner paid most of the investment.[2]

The Federal Police said the region is not traditionally chosen for cannabis cultivation on this scale, which would indicate the illegal activity is moving within Pernambuco, since crops are usually grown by riverside communities of the sertão on the banks of the São Francisco river.[3] The Federal Police said a conviction on those charges could bring five to 15 years in prison.[2] Other people who were at the site fled before officers could detain them.[3]